Psychology and the Law

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School

York University

Department

Psychology

Course

PSYC 3310

Professor

Regina Schuller

Semester

Winter

Description

An introduction to forensic psychology The show Cops should instead of being referred to as reality TV should instead be known as reality fiction it is a constructed version of reality with its own biasesThe show cuts down a lot of hours of footage and also has sound editing so it seemsmore realistic What is forensic psychology Forensic psychology is often referred to as legal or criminological psychology Using a narrow definition to explain forensic psych is not good since it can leave out somethings such as defining as a clinical psych even if there are experimental psychologists who define themselves as forensic psychologist as wellBartol Bartol define forensic psych as 1 the research endeavor that examines human behavior directly related to the legal process and 2 the professional practice of psych within or in consultation with the legal system that embraces civil and criminal lawThe roles of a forensic psychologist The forensic psychologist as clinicians Clinical forensic psychologist concerned with mental health issues as they pertain to the legal system can be done in places like schools prisons and hospitals and can include both practice and research On the researcher side they can use assessment tools to predict whether an offender will be violent on the practical side an assessment could be used to determine whether if an offender is released whether he will be a danger to society In canada they must be a licensed clinician who has specialized in forensics this includes receiving a phD getting practical training in the field and passing a comprehensive exam Both clinical forensic psychologists and psychiatrist are trained to assess individuals w mental health problems that come in the legal area and they also engage in the same sort of research the difference between them is that psychiatrist follow the medical model of mental illness whereas psychologist believe mental illness is composed of physiological environment and personality